1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to disposal methods and apparatus and more particularly to a disposal system comprising a substantially flat, flexible material such as extruded plastic or the like having cinch means incorporated therein. While the preferred embodiment of the present invention is exemplified as a "table cloth," the invention is useful in a variety of applications, including lawn care, garbage collection, and any use for which standard type, plastic garbage bags can be used, but at a significant decrease in effort and expense.
An alternative embodiment of the invention teaches a table cloth or the like having a lifted, or raised edge, peripheral area for preventing liquids from spilling off of the sheet onto the users. Likewise, incorporated therein is cinch means for forming of the theretofore flat sheet into a bag-like for the disposing of the contained refuse.
The lifted edge as contemplated in the above embodiment may comprise merely a plastic ridge, or, preferably, a multitude of plastic "accordion" folds, wherein the cinch means lines the top of the fold area.
The present invention is particularly suitable for utilization as a tablecloth in conjunction with the eating of seafoods, such as, for example, crawfish, crabs, oysters, shrimp and the like, which generate a large amount of refuse during the meal. The system as disclosed allows disposal of the tablecloth, simultaneously creating a container for the disposal of the contents.
When cinched, the present invention may be handled like a conventional plastic garbage bag, and therefore does not require a separate garbage container for disposal.
2. Prior Art & General Background
While the prior art has apparently contemplated a method and/or apparatus for the utilization of a cinch or drawstring in conjunction with plastic garbage bags, it has not taught a device suitable for use as a table cloth or related application which might be disposable, and concurrently dispose of waste placed atop it. In fact, the below cited prior patents have not even remotely contemplated such a device. The prior art is apparently limited to bag-type structures.
Virtually all of the flexible garbage containers in the prior art, which incorporated cinch closing means, comprised a bag of sorts, unlike the present invention, which lies completely flat when opened, allowing less laborious placing of the garbage in and on the containment area.
A list of prior patents which may be of interest is presented below:
______________________________________ Patent No. Patentee(s) Issue Date ______________________________________ 2,777,491 G. Ashton et al Jan 15, 1957 2,975,863 M. Sosnowich March 21, 1961 3,204,855 I. D. Boyton et al Sept. 7, 1965 3,653,583 Meyer Apr 4, 1972 3,676,887 Klien July 18, 1972 3,739,418 Yonaites et al June 19, 1973 3,806,984 Hilsabeck Apr. 30, 1974 4,471,600 Dunleavy Sep 18, 1984 4,558,463 Boyd Dec 10, 1985 ______________________________________
As evident from a review of the above patents, the prior art has failed to conceive a tablecloth or like device which includes cinch means for allowing containment of any garbage or other item placed upon it.
Further, the prior art has not contemplated a table cloth or the like which incorporates an elevated periphery area for the prevention of spillage of beverages and fluid extricated from, for example, seafood during eating, as well as cinch means for containing any refuse left on the table once the meal is completed. Of course, this embodiment has other uses as well, including, for example, retaining fluids under an automobile during repair, carpentry, and any other application which requires the containment of particulates, liquids, or small debris.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,471,600 issued 1984 teaches a "Leaf Bagging Equipment and Method," wherein a leaf collecting and bagging assembly is made up of a plastic bag having an open end and sheet means attached to the opening, the sheet designed to "guide" leaves and the like into the opening of the bag for containment.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,653,583 issued 1972 teaches a "Drawcord Bag" made of plastic having drawcords about the periphery of the opening of the bag for the containment of waste garbage and the like.
None of the above cited prior art patents are usable in the method contemplated in the present invention. Further, except for the common utilization of cinch means, the prior art is unrelated in construction to that contemplated in the present invention. Until the advent of the present invention, there was apparently no device designed for the clean, convenient, and economical disposal of foods with a large percentages of throw away material, such as, for example, crawfish, shrimp, crabs, and the like.
3. General, Summary Discussion of the Invention
The present invention overcomes these prior art problems by providing a system which is highly reliable, relatively economical and very cost effective.
The present invention comprises a flexible, substantially flat cover of plastic or the like, with cinch means incorporated in its periphery, allowing the theretofore, substantially flat cover to form a bag-like container when cinched for items theretofore placed upon it when flat, whether the cover is used as a tablecloth, dust cover, or in many other possible uses too numerous to list.
In contrast to the prior art, cinched, garbage bag, which must be held and opened up for debris to be effectively contained within it, in the present invention the temporary, disposable cover is placed on the work surface in a substantially flat disposition and the debris is then placed on it when in its flat disposition. Only when it is desired to dispose of the covering and its associated debris, is the sheet device cinched up to effectively form a bag-like configuration. Again, in contrast to the standard, prior art, plastic bag, which when laid flat has a two wall thickness, the sheet device of the present invention typically would have only a single wall or layer thickness, with the two wall thickness of the prior art garbage bag being separable when the bag is opened for use, while any multiple layers in the sheet device of the invention typically would not being separable.
An alternative embodiment of the invention teaches "spillproof" means in the form of a raised, surrounding periphery incorporated in conjunction with the cinch means. The raised periphery may be made via multiple folds in an "accordion" manner, or may comprise the implementation of a raised member, including the cinch itself, into the peripheral lining of the cover.
The alternative embodiment is particularly suitable for use as a tablecloth in conjunction with the consumption of seafood, such as crawfish, crabs and the like, which expel large amounts of juices when peeled. During cleanup, the cinched member need only be pulled in an upward fashion, allowing the tablecloth to envelope and contain the shells, juices, et cetera, remaining. This alternative embodiment is also appropriate for use at children's parties, where there is a high likelihood of beverages being spilled thereon.
It is thus an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus and method for conveniently covering an area and providing means to envelope and contain refuse placed thereon.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a disposable table cloth incorporating cinch means therein.
It is still a further object of the present invention to provide a disposable table cloth having cinch means and means to prevent beverages and other fluids from spilling.
Lastly it is an object of the present invention to provide a system for disposing of refuse and the like utilizing a cinched cover area upon which the refuse is placed.